Lisbon

Lisbon

Lisbon, or Lisboa as the Portuguese call her, is a magnificent city. We arrived here last night after a long yet enjoyable flight from Los Angeles via Air France. The Airbus A380 is fantastic and very comfortable. The transfer at Charles de Gaulle in Paris was so so – actually very tedious and annoying. But we’re here and that’s what counts.

After a low key evening at the hotel, we hit the ground running this morning with a very deliberate itinerary – the Alfama and then parts unknown. The Alfama is the oldest part of the city and the only section that survived the earthquake of 1755 – thus it’s very old and quaint. On our way there, we discovered that there was a general taxi strike – most likely because of Uber – and very obvious as we entered the main boulevard of Lisbon. There were hundreds of taxis lined along the main boulevard with a very strong police presence.

The main boulevard is lovely with large, wide sidewalks on either side and additional paths down the middle with gorgeous sycamore trees. Here’s some of the street art that’s visible everywhere.

The Alfama

I had read in Rick Steve’s guide how to get to the top of the Alfama – it was amazing. The castle at the top of the steep hill is accessible through two separate elevators that are free of charge… but you need to know how to find them – but we did. Lisbon is a city built on seven hills and you definitely know it after walking around the city. We walked a total of 10 miles today – most of it down hill because of our proper planning. Here are a few of the photos I took along the way.

The architecture, particularly in the Alfama, is stunning. Every corner you turn presents another architectural gem – particularly highlighted with colorful tiles.

Then, of course, there are the trams that cozy up the narrow streets of the Alfama – barely making it through the narrow streets. I was luckily able to get a picture of the infamous Tram number 28 – a great photo opportunity.

Of course I need to include a couple of selfie shots along the way.

I’ll close with some night shots from the running track atop our hotel – the views are beautiful. Please keep following as I update our blog along our travels through Portugal. Boa Noite.